The Daughter Comes Forth
by Anaroriel
Summary: Sequel to Neal's Daughter. Kimi continues to study to become a knight, but will certain obstacles cause her dream to come to a halt?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: This is the sequel to Neal's Daughter, a story about Kimi of Queenscove and her journey to become a knight of Tortall. I suggest you read that one first, it's under my author info, and everything will make much more sense if you do. :) Constructive Criticism is always appreciated, and I hope you enjoy the continuation of my story.**

The girl woke slowly to the dark and musky smell of rain. Big drops of water hit the window in an uncertain melody while the wind harmonized fiercely like the sound of low, whispery flutes. It was early yet, about an hour before dawn. Underneath the storm was a veiled, unyielding silence and the girl felt uneasy to do anything that would disturb the low quiet.

Silently she slinked out of bed like a cat and stretched her spine. Although it was raining, the young girl knew she had to stretch and work out for the day. But who was to blame her if she stayed in her room and out of the weather?

She opened up the shutters as silently as she could, but she still winced at the slight tapping of the wood as they clinked closer together. The sky was full of dark ominous clouds and streaks of bright light. Overall, it was a depressing sight to wake up to.

Black hair veiled her expressive face as she bent down to stretch her legs. She was pretty, with light brown slanted eyes, a small nose and mouth, and glossy black hair. She was lithe and graceful, and was able to stretch her limbs out far like a dancer. But a dancer was not the profession she was going into; she was going to be a knight of the realm of Tortall.

Her name was Kimiko of Queenscove, an ambitious ten-year-old with the dream to become the sixth female knight in over a century. Things were changing faster now and Kimi was soon finding out that her attempt at knighthood was much easier than those of her predecessors. It was something she thanked the Goddess for everyday, and Kimi was certain that Sir Alanna, the first female page, also thanked the Goddess for the rights of women restored.

As Kimi started her glaive pattern dance, an exercise using a long wooden pole with a six inch blade on the top, she thought happily about spring. The only positive thing she could see out of the dreary weather was that it hinted that the freezing winters were over and spring was on its way. Kimi didn't mind cold weather, but she much preferred spring, as it was her favorite season.

She swung the heavy glaive in an intricate pattern and felt sweat forming on her forehead. _Just a few more and I'll be done,_ she thought happily. She carefully swung the glaive out in front of her, and over her head to complete the last slashing movement. Unfortunately, Kimi had to stop mid-swing because a quiet knock on the door interrupted her concentration.

Kimi leaned the glaive against the wall and wiped her forehead with her sleeve. She hoped that it was one of the other pages, because she certainly wasn't dressed appropriately for fine company. She felt a little suspicious at her early morning visitor because who in their right minds would be up? _I certainly wouldn't, _she thought with grim good humor, _that is, if I was in my right mind. _

She hesitated briefly, and another little knock was produced, though it was more insistent. She opened the door cautiously and was greeted with a vision of Jonathan looking impatient. "Jon, it's so nice to see you."

He raised his eyebrows at her. "What are you doing? Shouldn't you be dressed by now?"

She frowned at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean we only have five minutes before Lord HaMinch starts the prayers," he looked at her with a funny expression when she gasped.

"What? I thought I was actually on time!" She mentally cursed the bad weather which confused her to think it was much earlier than it was.

"I did have a reason for coming here," Jon said before Kimi could shut and lock her door. "Do you have any green tea? I have a splitting headache and it always helps."

"Oh, yes, sorry. Come in," Kimi beckoned for the boy to follow her into her neat room. She pulled out a box from beneath her bed and took out a packet of green tea and handed it to him.

"Thanks," he said gratefully. "I'll go brew this and meet you in the Mess Hall in a few minutes."

Kimi nodded absently and watched him rush off. She splashed some water on her body quickly and dressed into comfortable clothes for the morning. Feeling vain, she brushed her hair and washed her face. She tried scrubbing her teeth while putting on her boots, but only managed to drop teeth cleaning powder on her tunic. She threw off the tunic and replaced it with another one, and promised herself to pick up her room before classes. She hated a dirty room.

Lord Padraig HaMinch was strict on punctuality, and he preferred the pages to skip a meal rather than show up late. If a page had nice friends, they would notice his or her absence and they would bring him or her something to eat later. Kimi had nice friends, but there was a limit to how much a page could sneak out without being detected. Patrik seemed to be the only boy with the skills to smuggle an entire tray of food, but even he had to be very careful and use his slight of hand for emergencies.

Kimi burst out of her room and ran toward the Mess Hall. She just happened to walk in during morning prayers. All the pages turned and looked at her when the doors noisily swung open, and the training master paused in his litany. He glared at her with disapproval dripping from his feature while Kimi gulped and cursed silently for her bad timing. Lord HaMinch finished the prayer with a soft "So mote it be," and then said, "Page Kimiko, please come up here." It was not a request.

"Queenscove, you know that punctuality is a knight's most important responsibility, and that lateness could cost many lives."

"Yes, your lordship," Kimi said meekly.

The training master paused and closed his eyes. Finally he announced, "Your detention will be two weeks long, every night at seven. You will be mucking out the stables, and you will be prompt. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, my lord," Kimi replied while trying to hold back making a face. It was her least favorite chore and Lord HaMinch knew it.

"Good, you are dismissed." Kimi bowed to the great man and hurried off, glad to be no longer in close proximity of the training master.

"That took a while," Gary commented when she sat down next to him. Gareth III of Naxen was the youngest child of Sir Gareth the Younger of Naxen after a long line of daughters. His mother and father decided to try one more time for a boy, which was the reason for the ten year gap between the ages of Gary and the youngest daughter. Gary looked like a miniature of his father with the softened features of his mother Lady Cythera.

"You know my Lord HaMinch; he has so many mind files to go through to find the punishment that will cause me the most pain."

"That's true," Patrik lamented. "He always makes me polish silver, which he knows the smell makes me sick. That's our lovable training master."

"So what did you get?" Theo asked eagerly. Theo was a bright, green-eyed twelve-year-old with an amazing memory for gossip. He was tall and lanky, and hadn't quite grown into his feet.

"Mucking out stables for two weeks," replied Kimi. She made a face. "I should have just stayed in my chamber without interrupting the prayers and coming late, but I was hungry. Speaking of food, I'm going to get some." She rose from the bench and walked purposefully over to fill her tray. It surprised her a little how much habits can change in a few months. Before, she couldn't take a bite in the morning without feeling sick to her stomach, but now it was the meal she depended on the most.

"Have any of you heard from Ana lately?" she asked when she returned. She had gotten a letter from the girl squire a few days before.

"No, I haven't heard from her in months," answered Furtan unhappily. "But I bet she's really busy." Furtan was a large fourth year page with a wide face and patient eyes. He was the calmest and most gentle person Kimi had ever known, and he found it easy to forgive.

Gary and Theo shook their heads. "Jon?" Kimi asked quietly. The Prince had been laying his head on his arms and silent because of his headache. He lifted his head, took a drink of green tea, and shook his head.

"Do you want me to look at you?" Kimi offered. She had a strong healing Gift like her parents, untrained as it was.

She moved over to stand behind him when he didn't respond. She placed her hands on his temple and called her magic. She heard the pages around her talk about the Shang Boar that was coming today and it threw off her concentration. Again she pulled on her magic, though this time with more force. Her magic was a shade of turquoise, though it was a little greener than the stone, and it now glistened slightly at her fingers. She probed around his head until she found where the pain was lingering. There were black flecks mixed in the pain spot, and it worried her some. She burned them away immediately then went through his brain more thoroughly .She found two more black flecks and destroyed them, but she was now concerned. She eased the pain away and then pulled away from him.

"Feel any better?" Jon actually smiled at her.

"Much better, thank you, Kimi."

Her food was cold, but she gobbled it down anyway. She brushed the crumbs off her brown tunic and exited the Hall with her friends to get their books for morning classes. Kimi worried all through morning classes, but tried to take her mind off of it as best she could.

"I never heard you say, have you gotten a letter from Ana?" Kimi asked during Etiquette class. It was her least favorite class, and most of the time she spent the hour talking to Patrik, who also hated the class. It was very boring and taught by a red faced and beefy Mithran Priest who was often the brunt of the two pages' jokes.

Patrik looked down at the Etiquette book and said nothing. He was not often serious and had a dramatic and fun loving personality, but one mention of the red-haired squire and he was lost.

"Not at all?" she asked sadly. She felt ashamed that she had gotten a letter and that she had brought it up. Patrik and Ana, her full name Regiana of Phoenix Peak, had been the best of friends for three years. Unfortunately they had not parted well, and Ana refused to answer his letters.

"Have you received any word from her?" He looked up with green hazel eyes full of hope. Kimi could deflect questions she didn't want to answer, but this direct and hopeful question she could not get around.

"She likes to write me when she comes up with more page advice. She likes to know the happenings of the palace and… certain pages." She looked up at him to catch his reaction. Ana asked about Patrik every letter.

"I wish she would write to me, I miss her," he said simply.

_Ana still loves you, Patrik, _she wanted to say, but she knew it wasn't her place. "She sent me a letter from Persopolis saying that she and Sir Merric are riding up north now. She didn't know which road they were to take, but Sir Merric was still deciding as she was writing."

"What advice did she give you?" Kimi felt tempted to just let Patrik read her letter, but she knew Ana would feel violated. It wasn't completely private, but it wasn't meant for Patrik's eyes either.

"That I should remain on my guard against pranks even though the year is almost over. She said that she started relaxing and then got dumped with mud one day after she was leaving her room in a hurry."

Kimi was lucky. Most of the boys already knew Ana well and had become tolerant of girl pages because of her presence. Very few pranks had been pulled on the new girl page because of it, but Kimi continued to be cautious anyway.

"Good advice," Patrik said and grinned. "Mud? I never heard about that one. Nothing beats chili though."

Kimi made a face. A month ago she was leaving her room to go the practice fields and a bucket of chili, slightly watered down so that it wouldn't stick to the bucket, had splashed the entire area around her door and Kimi herself. The worst was that the bucket was not properly rigged, and so fell and hit her head. Kimi blacked out for a few minutes until Gary found her.

"That was not funny," she protested, but a smile came to her lips anyhow.

"Oh, yes it was," Gary leaned over from the other table. Apparently he was listening to their conversation rather than writing the paper about proper moments for a knight to give gifts. Kimi didn't blame him; after all, that was what she and Patrik were supposed to be doing.

"I still remember your face when you woke up and realized what happened. Completely priceless." _It hadn't been so funny at the time, _Kimi complained to herself. Gary had been terrified when he saw Kimi lying in a puddle of something he couldn't identify.

"Yes, it will become page legend in a few years, mark my words. Page Kimi passes out from just touching the chili. A warning to all brave souls who want to eat the same substance served in the Mess Hall," Patrik recited with a wicked smile.

"I can make it palace legend if you want me too," Theo teased from the table behind them. Kimi whipped open the book as Theo started talking and she pretended to be writing. "Just give…" He trailed off when he realized a second too late what Kimi and then Patrik and Gary were doing.

"And I can make _you_, Vitry, palace legend if you don't get to work!" The Mithran Priest swooped down on them like a hawk barring down on its prey.

"Yes, sir," Theo gulped and wrote hastily on his parchment.

"All of you, stop talking! This class is not for your social enjoyment!" His red face turned a shade of purple as he yelled.

Gary, Kimi, and Patrik refused to look up from their scribbling and waited as the Priest finally stomped off to yell at another group. Theo looked properly upset for being singled out.

"You all leave a bad example of me," he said with a tint of whining in his voice.

"That's why he loves our company so much," Kimi told the other boys. "He wouldn't get near the entertainment with anyone else. Isn't that right, Theo?'

Theo glared at her. "Now I am definitely making the chili story Palace Legend." Kimi stuck out her tongue at him.

"What did you think of Sir Myles' lesson today?" Gary asked. He was very much into the politics of Tortall, and though he disagreed with Sir Myles' ideas, the history class was his favorite place to be.

Kimi shrugged. She hated politics and refused to pay attention to what was happening in the Tortallan political arena.

"It's going to catch up with you someday," Gary warned. "Then you'll wish you had an opinion and listened."

"I enjoyed it," Theo said. He leaned over his books and across the table so he could hear Gary's low whisperings better. "I agree with him, there have been more changes under the rule of King Jonathan than any other Tortall king in history."

"Yes, that part was obvious," Gary brushed it aside impatiently, "I was referring more to his beliefs that the noble class will disappear in a few years and the merchants and the middle class will become the power house of the country. Do you think that will actually happen?" There was real concern in Gary's tone, but Kimi wasn't worried. King Jonathan would never go that far, would he?

"It's possible," Patrik allowed. "It's slowly happening already, but unless something drastic happens, the nobles will always be above the rest of the people."

Kimi was bored, so she concentrated to finish her essay. The bell rang, and the pages moved to the next classroom. Theo, Gary, and Patrik were still deep in discussion, so Kimi moved to sit next to Jonathan and Furtan.

"How have you been doing?" she asked Jon. The black spots still worried her, but she hoped they were gone for good. Kimi thought that perhaps she could ask a healer to look at the prince, but she ignored the thought. Jon couldn't be seriously ill; he was a God-gifted ruler.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you to my darling reviewers! I appreciate that you still want to continue with me on this story, and I am glad that I get such compliments. :) I'll name you all because I adore you all so much! Thanks to RunnerNDA,you should never give up faith;-) , to crouchingbunny foryour three reviews thatI didn't get to reply to yet, toKaysin for your encouragement and for your love of my characters (I love them too!), and King's Lioness, for your patience. ;-) Here's the next chapter, I hope you enjoy!**

The year was drawing to a close as spring shifted into warm summer. The End of the Year Tests were coming upon the pages like a tsunami – sudden and frightening – and soon the pages were only seen in either their rooms cramming all they learned in a year within one week, or on the practice courts perfecting a martial art. The new Shang Boar proved to be a helpful and much needed addition to the staff. He came down with the nervous pages during the breaks and coaxed them and encouraged them, like one would deal with skittish colts, until they felt comfortable enough and secure in their abilities to perform.

The Shang Boar was a gentle elderly man who had originated in Carthak. He was surprisingly tolerant of the different races and genders seen among the pages, but Kimi concluded he learned that from his travels. He got off topic often and told many amusing tales of his time in Galla or Scanra, or any other place that might amaze the young pages. It was the reason for his delay, he had been in Maren when the Shang Falcon had contacted him about taking the position of teaching the pages hand to hand combat, and it had taken three months to get his affairs in order and travel back to Corus.

At first glance the pages were unimpressed with the short and thin-haired man, but they all grew to respect him in their own ways in the final two months before the summer break. He was very strong and very patient, and he soon became a favorite instructor of many pages.

One night after dinner, Kimi was preparing to read an entire Etiquette book in one night. She was now regretting her laziness and procrastination, and she needed to know all of it in three days. Luckily it was a Saturday night, so she did not have as many responsibilities on a Sunday than any other day.

She was settling comfortably in the third chapter when she heard a call down the hallway she hadn't expected to hear for another few months. It sounded like Gary's voice echoing up the stone hallway, and she could hear a few doors yank open as a result of the call.

Kimi tossed her book to the side, slightly out of relief for a diversion, and also flung open her door. She ducked her head out the door and pulled her long black hair out of her face so she could see both sides of the corridor.

There, a few feet from her door on the left, was Regiana of Phoenix Peak. Surrounded by boys, who were all gleefully hugging her, she returned their eager embraces with happy laughter.

"It's so good to see you again too, Theo," Ana said fondly to the sandy haired boy that had a friendly arm around her shoulders. "I assume you know of my duties from gossip?"

He grinned at her and nodded. "Of course! How else was I supposed to know what you were truly up to? Some things are not safe to send by letter."

The younger girl stood back and watched the reunion of friends. She studied the older girl critically and examined every flaw. Her eyes were two big and her mouth too thin; her freckles hid some unbecoming pimples. Her eyebrows and eyelashes were too light in color and brought attention away from her blue eyes, and her red hair looked like copper wires that had burst from their coils and tangled together. She had a large bosom for a girl of fifteen and she was much too tall and thick to be a shapely beauty. Kimi was comparing Ana's character to a siren for what she did to Patrik when the female squire noticed the half-Yamani female page.

"Kimi!" she cried out with joy. She hugged Kimi, and Kimi returned the gesture lightly. "It's so nice to see you! You've received my letters, I hope?" As Kimi was being swept up into this warm greeting she felt ashamed of herself. Ana was a lovely girl, and although she wasn't astonishingly beautiful, she was quite pretty. And while she was being honest with herself, Ana was not liken to a siren; both Patrik and Ana made mistakes in their relationship that they regretted.

Kimi relaxed and hugged the girl with joy. "I did receive your letters, and I thank you for each and every one." She smiled kindly at the only female squire. For all their similar dreams, the girls were very different, and not just in their looks. Kimi appreciated the difference now.

Ana looked past Kimi's ear to the distant end of the corridor and saw something that caused her smile to fade. "Hide me," she whispered. Kimi glanced over her shoulder and recognized Patrik walking toward them, oblivious to the commotion down the hall. Kimi dragged the ashen girl into her room and shut the door firmly into the other pages' stunned faces.

"Ana," Kimi turned to the other girl. "I rescued you this time, but you cannot avoid him forever."

Ana sighed and looked away so she wouldn't have to meet Kimi's exotic eyes. "I know," she admitted. "I shouldn't have said that, it was pure instinct, that's all. We should probably go out there so I can face him, shouldn't we?" She looked so forlorn about the idea that Kimi was tempted to refuse her.

"Only if you're ready…"

"That's the problem. I'm not." Ana regarded Kimi with a look that was sad and full with regret. She blinked it away and shook her head. "He says he loves me, Kimi. And I love him too, but I can't. People don't fall in love at fifteen and fourteen. It's not practical."

"So that's the problem?" Kimi blinked and jerked her head to stare at Ana. True, she had never really understood what the fight was about, but she didn't think it would be this. "I thought it was because he was overprotective or something."

"Oh, no," she said distantly. "I always thought that was sweet of him."

"Right," she said slowly. Kimi was beginning to think Ana was crazy. Jonathan was always protective of Kimi and it irritated her constantly. Thinking about Jonathan, she remembered the other pages. "Shouldn't you go outside? There is a whole host of pages waiting to see you."

"Of course," she answered at once and tried to smooth her frizzy hair. "Aren't you coming?"

Kimi shook her head sadly and then pulled a piece of hair that had gotten caught in her mouth. She gestured toward the Etiquette book lying abandoned on the bed. "I need to finish reading this by tomorrow," she muttered, reluctance apparent in her voice. "But tell me all about it later," she continued eagerly. "I will see you tomorrow, right?"

"Yes," Ana said, and a smile lit up her face more than sunshine ever could. "We aren't leaving until after the tests. I get to see the fourth year pages become the new squires."

Whether it was practical or not, it was obvious to Kimi that Ana really did love Patrik. She shrugged mentally and opened the door for Ana to leave. The pages had gone, all except for one.

"Patrik," Ana said breathlessly. She took a step back and Kimi bit back a cry when she felt a heavy pressure on her foot. Her foot started to throb.

"Regi Red." His voice was quiet and the two girls barely heard him.

"Can you get off my foot, please? You're not heavy, but after a while it starts to hurt," Kimi complained.

"Oh!" Ana jumped forward and bumped in Patrik. "I'm so sorry Kimi! Does it hurt a lot? Do you need to see a healer?"

"No – Yes," Kimi stammered when she saw Ana give her a desperate look. "In fact, I think you're going to need to help me." She took a step forward, leaned precariously, and fell against Ana's shoulder dramatically. "Nope," she announced. "I can't walk. Isn't that something?"

Patrik did not look impressed by her performance. "She stepped on your foot, she didn't cut it off. Even if she did injure it, you're a healer. Heal it yourself." He turned his attention to Ana and sighed. "Look, I don't want Kimi to get involved in this, but if you try to use her as a way to avoid me she will be. Why can't we talk?"

Ana hesitated for a moment then decided to be cowardly. "I think you're really hurt, Kimi, I know that I hurt people unintentionally all the time," she dragged the girl down the hall while Kimi feigned injury and tried to keep up. Patrik followed behind with his arms crossed as if this was some mildly entertaining show.

"You need to give it a little less weight," Patrik suggested as they continued their way down the hallway. "It's not realistic the way you're doing it, because when you break any bone in your leg it's very painful to put any weight on it." Kimi broke character for a second and grinned at him. She held her leg up and hopped. "Much better," Patrik approved.

"Kimi, you're not helping!" Ana cried with exasperation and dropped her. "Whose side are you on?"

Kimi dropped ungracefully and landed on her backside. "Ow! You could have warned me before you just let me go. I could have really hurt myself."

"You're a healer! How hurt could you get that you couldn't fix yourself in a few moments?" Ana rolled her eyes. She froze when Patrik laughed. "Look, Patrik…"

"Ana, please?" It wasn't the tone of his voice that caught her attention nor the gentle touch of his hand on her arm; it was the use of the name she wished all the boy pages would call her. The name she wished Patrik would always call her and not Regi Red.

"I'll go…" Kimi motioned to the two who just stared at each other. She rubbed her backside as she walked away and glanced once behind her. Ana and Patrik were holding hands and walking slowly away. They were talking animatedly to each other, and Kimi was thankful. Perhaps this would be the last of the drama? Later, when she looks back at that thought, she laughs.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hello my wonderful readers and reviewers! ****AnimeChick009: thanks for the review! I will try to update as soon as I can. :) Evilone33 and RunnerNDA: Thank you! I never understood why Tamora Pierce never had a procrastinator because so many people (including myself!) have incredible bouts of laziness. ;-) What better way to make my character real than to give her real traits? Evilone33, there will definitely be surprises. ;-) And RunnerNDA, you're right about drama in Corus! KingsLioness: yes, Kimi will be a squire, or I hope so, anyway. ;-) luvklm1991: I will have someone with Kimi eventually, but right now she's much too young, she's still only 10! And thank you, SylRose! I always like praise. :-)**

"Are you ready for this?" Jonathan asked.

Kimi tried her best to hide a yawn. They were dressed in their best page outfits and outside the chamber where they were to be tested.

Jonathan saw the yawn and frowned at her. "You should have slept instead of studying math all night." He gestured at the dark smudges under her eyes with concern. Kimi tried to stop another jaw popping yawn.

"I needed to study," she explained as she rubbed her eyes.

"Right, so when you fall asleep during your math problem then it'll all be work it?" he asked sarcastically.

"Naturally." Kimi frowned. "What's wrong with you?"

"I'm just nervous, I guess," he said and shuffled his feet.

"Then you should have stayed up all night studying. I'm so tired I'm not nervous at all."

"I'm not like you. I need my sleep or I don't function at all," Jon said which a tinge of jealously in his voice.

"Funny, neither do I," she grinned at him and he cuffed her arm lightly.

"It's time," Lord HaMinch said as he came up to the first year pages. They filed in after their training master and the boys tried to remain calm. Kimi yawned.

"Page Kimiko of Queenscove?" Kimi stepped forward and placed herself in front of the table of judges.

"What is the Capital of the Copper Isles?" the first judge asked.

Kimi blinked. She wasn't sure if the man was serious or not. "Rajmuat?" she said timidly. _Maybe it is a trick question, _she thought.

"Correct." Kimi couldn't help it, she turned around and stared at Jonathan so she could share her disbelief with him. He gave a small smile, and the corners of his Yamani-like eyes crinkled to show his amusement at her reaction.

The questions continued to be called out to her from the line of judges. They were very easy, in her opinion. _I didn't even need to read the Etiquette book,_ she realized. That thought annoyed her and she made a face at Ulric when she returned to stand with the other first year pages. Ulric looked like he tried to swallow an entire apple and it got caught in his throat. He was a reddish purple color that contrasted sharply against his white blonde roots. Kimi gave him a little pat on his shoulder for support. The questions to the other pages were also very simple, and all of them passed.

"I feel like I've wasted my time," Jiri complained as they made their way down to the practice courts. He was a light skinned and dark haired little boy who looked like someone splattered brown paint on his face and neck. Jiri said he didn't mind his excessive freckles because his mother could never tell if he was dirty or not and so didn't make him wash his neck and face as much as his freckle-less brother. Jiri was an all right fellow, but Kimi was not friends with him.

"Me too," Ulric added. He was slowly returning to his original color.

"I wonder if it is harder for the other pages." Jonathan inquired to no one in particular.

"I hope not," Kimi said fervently. "Now all we need to do is a little jousting, some basics of fencing, a little archery and a little combat and we'll be done."

They were stumbling down the hill towards the training courts when they were accosted by all the other pages. Gary, Theo, Patrik, and Furtan ran up to Kimi and Jon while the other pages approached their own first year friends.

"How did you do?" Gary asked.

"Was it simple?" Patrik wanted to know.

"Who were the judges?" Theo demanded with eager bright eyes.

The pages were no longer allowed to watch the tests after a few years ago some of the pages had figured out a way to cheat. Those pages were kicked out and the rules were changed.

"We all passed," Jon answered.

"It was disappointing, actually," Kimi admitted. "I mean, they asked such simple questions. Unless someone lived under a rock his whole life, then he wouldn't be able to pass."

"I can't remember who was judging," Jonathan answered after Theo prodded him. "My mind was on other things.

"Um, that one Baron from Tameran," Kimi remembered, and her face contorted as she tried to recall the others.

Theo sighed. "You all are useless to me, did you know that?"

"What difference does it make?" Kimi demanded. In her mind it was an unimportant detail.

"Because it shows who the king is favoring," Theo explained with an impatient air, "who he trusts to see the children of the nobles are well educated and worthy of continuing this great education."

"They asked what the capital of the Copper Isles is," Kimi said flatly. "Obviously they don't see this education so highly if they think we can't answer a question harder than that."

Theo shook his head. "You don't understand politics."

"We're just glad you passed," Furtan said to change the subject.

"We've got to go," Jonathan said. He understood politics, but he didn't like discussing his grandfather's policies. "We're going to be late to the practice courts." He grabbed Kimi's arm and dragged her away.

"See you soon, boys!" she called and waved.

"Good luck!" the boys yelled back.

The practice courts tests were just as simple as the academic ones. "Well," Kimi said when they were brushing their horses afterwards, "with tests like these, anyone can be a knight."

"You forget one thing," Mortimer piped in, "the Chamber of the Ordeal. My father says it's the hardest thing he ever had to suffer through."

Kimi sighed. "Good point. I don't want to think about _that _until I'm a squire."

"Nor I," squeaked Ulric. His face was an unhealthy white.

"Are you well?" Jon asked the pale boy.

"Yes, Your Highness. I'm glad this is only once a year though. I don't like going in front of people." Ulric gulped thickly at the thought.

"Isn't that the point of being a knight?" asked Jiri. "You're supposed to go in front of people and give them orders and things."

"I plan to learn how to fight and then follow a commander's orders, then go home and rule my fief," answered Ulric confidently.

"Remind me to never give you a leadership position," teased Jon. He finished brushing his horse and put the brushes away.

"That I will," said Ulric, and he gave his prince a salute.

Three days later at dinner the buzz among the pages was louder than usual. All the pages had passed the End of the Year Tests and now the newly made squires were going to leave them to join the other squires.

Ana wasn't sitting with the pages for the first time; instead she was waiting with the other squires for Patrik and Furtan to join her.

"I'm going to miss you boys," Kimi told Furtan and Patrik. "Who will I joke with in Etiquette class?" she said in a teasing manner to Patrik, but her heart was breaking. Things would never be the same again after Patrik and Furtan left. "Who will keep the peace so we don't kill each other?" she turned to Furtan who was sitting on the other side of Gary.

Furtan gave her a gentle smile and touched her arm in a brotherly way. He understood that she was upset even though she was trying to hide it. "We'll visit often, you'll see," he told her.

"We're not leaving yet," Patrik informed her. "In fact, we're going to be stuck here until some knights choose us to squire for them. It's going to be a long summer."

Kimi wished her face wasn't so expressive. Everyone sitting at the table could tell she was upset. "I know you'll visit soon and often," she said. She was determined to be brave, but it was hard. Patrik and Furtan were the first to really befriend her, and if she was honest with herself, she was very attached to them. Although unaware, she counted on them to always be there and watch out for her.

Lord HaMinch walked purposefully toward the High Table and ignored the pages who scrambled to their feet. "New squires, you are seated in the wrong place," Lord HaMinch spoke the customary words. Patrik and Furtan and the four other former pages picked up their trays and moved to sit with the other squires. A feeling of great loss settled on Kimi that she couldn't seem to shake loose. She cheered half-heartedly with the other pages and squires and watched as Patrik slid onto the bench next to Ana and Furtan sat down on the other side. The couple shared a warm smile and Kimi felt a pang of jealousy that Ana got to sit with Patrik and Furtan and she didn't.

"All will be well, Kimi," Jon assured her. He slid closer to her now that the seat was vacated. "After all, you still have me," he joked and smiled at her.

"And me," said Gary.

"And me!" cried Theo. "And do I have some news for you. It is official; Sir Myles is finally retiring this year."

Gary's face fell. "What are we going to do without him? Sir Myles is the best history teacher that ever passed through here. Now we'll get some dull Mithran Priest who has no appreciation for current events."

"We might get someone good," Jonathan said vaguely.

"Do you know who it will be?" Kimi turned to Jon. He was a wealth of knowledge, but he often kept it to himself. Theo and Jon were not the greatest of friends for that reason, but they respected each other.

"No," answered Jon slowly. "I just overheard my father and my Lord HaMinch speaking about it, and they are planning to choose the next one carefully. Apparently they feel history is an important subject."

"I could have told you that," said Gary.

Kimi pushed her vegetables around her plate. "I'm not hungry, so I think I will go to my room and pack," she informed her group of friends and stood up to leave.

"See you later then," Gary said, and returned to Theo to get more news.

Kimi carried her tray across the room to put it away. As she passed the squire tables she overheard Ana and Patrik talking.

"Did you even eat any of it?" Patrik asked. On Ana's plate was a piece of meat the size of her hand. It looked like a little piece had been sawed off the end of it.

"Yes," she replied.

"A bite maybe," Patrik countered. He had fears about Ana's eating habits that were well grounded.

"So? I ate my potato." Ana looked down at her plate and pushed her red hair behind her ears.

"Oh, well, if you've had starch, who needs protein?" Patrik said, sarcasm dripping from his voice.

Ana laughed a clear and pretty bubble of sound. "I ate the bacon on it," she claimed.

"And little strips of fried fat are great sources of protein." He gave her no nonsense and serious face that startled another laugh out of her.

Kimi passed out of earshot of the couple and left the Mess Hall. _They seem to be getting along well,_ she thought as she returned to her room. It made her smile a little. Patrik deserved some happiness, and if he received it through Ana then that made Kimi happy too.

Kimi managed to finish most of her packing before feeling pangs of hunger rouse in her stomach. She cursed herself lightly for not eating her dinner and for finishing her emergency snacks the night before. She was going home tomorrow and she needed to finish, but at the moment her stomach seemed more important than being prepared.

She snuck out into the hallway and snuck quietly through the palace to the kitchens. She knew Patrik smuggled food out of the kitchens all the time, so how hard could it be? She managed to grab an apple before one of the kitchen maids caught her and shooed her out. She chewed the juicy fruit happily as she returned to her room. It was almost time for lights' out, so she checked corners for people who might report her to the training master. She managed to avoid all people until she checked around the corner to the Page Hallway. She saw a sandy-haired head sticking out of one of the doors and spying on a young couple standing outside of Patrik's room. Quietly she slunk up to Theo and tapped him on the shoulder. He jumped a foot in the air before recognizing her, and then he placed a mischievous finger to his lips.

Kimi rolled her eyes. "It's not polite to spy or eavesdrop," she told him in a whisper.

"I know, but it's the only way I can find out what's going on! No one trusts me to tell me anything anymore," he whispered back. Kimi shook her head at him and moved past him to return to her room. He grabbed her arm and pulled into his room. "Don't, they'll see you and stop," he hissed at her. He stuck his head out the door and beckoned for Kimi to do the same.

At the moment, Ana and Patrik were kissing. Kimi didn't understand what Theo found so exciting about kissing until they broke apart.

"It's the only way," Ana told him. Despite her desire not to listen to two of her friends' private conversation, Kimi leaned forward to hear better.

"No, it's not," Patrik replied fiercely. "Just because you're leaving tomorrow doesn't mean we can't still be together." Kimi glanced at Theo and half expected to see him drool. He _loved _this kind of drama and was drinking it all in.

"I'm sorry, I don't want to come back and find our feelings have changed. I'd rather put a stop to this now." Ana shook her head and Kimi could almost hear the tears start to brim in her eyes.

"Nothing will change between us, Ana. Can't you see that? I love you." Kimi leaned forward more to look down the hallway. Patrik tried to kiss her again, but Ana pulled away.

"It's over, Patrik. We need to concentrate on our shields right now. It could be years before we see each other again. I love you, but we're both so young. I can't…" she faltered, and Patrik kissed her again.

"We can write letters, and think of each other. Please, I don't want to lose you again." His voice pleaded with her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, and before Patrik could stop her, she turned on her heel and ran off. Kimi and Theo snapped their heads back into the room and froze as the female squire ran past. _Wow,_ Kimi thought, and then an idiotic thought entered her head, _Ana's a fast runner. _But the more she thought about it as she returned to her room and prepared for bed, the less idiotic her thought seemed. Ana was a fast runner, and she ran often, especially from love.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hello my wonderful readers! Sorry this took so long to update, it was hard to write. Yes, poor Patrik, and unfortunately this is all filler,so Patrik and Ana are not in here. sadness The next chapter though... **

**Thank you to Erutanie for your lovely observations and compliments, and you'll just have to see in time. And RunnerNDA, it's not sad that you knew the answer! Of course, I knew the answer too, so maybe I shouldn't be the one to tell you this... :-P And as always, good insight into the characters and their situations. :-) I hope you all enjoy the chapter, and I promise you the next one will be much more exciting. **

Kimi spent the short summer months with her family. It pained her briefly that she wasn't as close with her siblings as she had been when she left for page training, and so she spent a great deal of time trying to get to know her brothers and sister again. Less than a year had passed, and her brothers had changed so much. She used to be so close with Baird, the eldest brother, only to return and find favoritism had changed. Hideaki had taken her place as the favorite sibling, and the two were inseparable.

Kimi felt a keen sadness at the unintentional exclusion from her brothers, but she spent the time learning more about her sister Keladry. Keladry was five years old now, and she was a bit spoiled. She was an adorable little girl, but she was forgotten and the center of attention by turns. Kimi gave Keladry the attention she needed and ignored her when the five year old threw temper tantrums. Soon Kimi found herself the favorite sibling of Keladry, and it warmed her heart to be loved.

The young female page tried her best to continue training, but soon found herself very lazy. _I'll train tomorrow, _she promised herself, but that tomorrow never came.

"Kimi," her mother said with very slight disapproval in her voice. "You haven't trained in weeks and you return to the palace in less than a month."

Father and Daughter were engaged in a chess game when her mother approached her. Kimi waved her away as she contemplated her next move.

"Yes, yes, I'll get to practicing in a moment. Hold on." She picked up her knight and toyed with it.

"Let her finish the game, Yuki," Neal said. "She has all year to train for knighthood. Let her relax."

Yuki frowned ever so slightly. "Fine," she said shortly. "But when you return and find yourself out of shape, don't blame me."

Kimi tentatively placed her knight on the chessboard. "Check," she said hesitantly.

Neal picked up his ivory queen and knocked Kimi's knight away. "Check mate," he announced.

Kimi made a face. "You cheated. I demand a rematch. I want to be white this time."

"You should practice, Kimi," Neal told her sternly. "I remember how much Kel had to train just to keep up with the rest of the boys."

"I'll practice tomorrow, Papa," she said and rolled her eyes. "Please, one more game?"

Neal sighed and nodded, and the two set up the chess pieces again. Kimi put on her game face. "After you, milady," her father told her mockingly, and Kimi moved her pawn forward.

A month later she and the other pages were back on the practice courts. Kimi was sweating profusely from the heat and the knowledge that she had only trained a few times at the beginning of the last two months. She prayed silently to the gods that none of the other boys had trained either, and that she wasn't out of shape as she feared she might be.

"Welcome back, pages!" the Shang Boar greeted them cheerfully. The pages smiled at him happily. He was one of the better liked instructors at the palace. "Today we are going to warm up all the muscles in the body and try to build up strength again before we attempt anything. New pages, you will be with us today, and tomorrow I will teach you some of the basics," he promised them, and then he began to instruct all in good stretching techniques.

After all the pages had stretched, the Shang Boar said, "We need to get stronger. Let's do pushups together. Twenty sounds good, don't you think?"

More beads formed on Kimi's forehead as she got on the floor and got into the correct position. _I can do this, _she told herself. _It's simple. I did fifty last year, I'm sure I can do twenty easily. _By her tenth pushup she wanted to kill the Shang Boar. It occurred to her that she didn't know his name. It was Tarek or Tahir or Tariq, she couldn't remember at all. She managed to get to the twelfth one before she cheated and pretended to do the rest. She was thankful that Hatsumomo wasn't there; because the one time she did this little trick before, Hatsumomo smacked her over the head and made her do all of them over again.

"Good! Very good," the Shang Boar told the pages with sincere encouragement. "Now, we need to work on our hearts and our lungs. I want you to follow me." The Shang Boar dashed off and the pages stumbled to catch up with him.

They ran all over the palace. They were running down the hill on the other side of the palace with the intention of circling the building to return to the practice courts when Kimi felt herself stumble. She wasn't a naturally clumsy person, but her breath came in short and violent spurts and sweat ran down her back and face, and extreme fatigue stole whatever gracefulness she had. Her feet had started to drag and her left foot caught on a rock. In a burst of speed she didn't know she had, she tried to right herself but over corrected it. Down she fell to her knees and her whole body shook. She had already fallen behind, so no one noticed her collapse except the Shang Boar. He called the pages to continue running to the courts and then curved around to return to her.

Deep shame filled Kimi and she sat with her head down, trying desperately to slow her breathing. She studied his strong leg muscles that had some scarring around the ankles and refused to look up.

"I know the Shang Falcon well," he said finally. He towered over her kneeling body and spoke softly. "She is rarely complimentary, and she is brutally honest at times. I admire that quality about her more than anything. I talked to her over the summer when she came back to the palace on the way to take a ship back to the Yamani Islands." He paused when Kimi rubbed her hands over her cheeks that were wet with sweat and tears. "She asked how you were. She told me that she believed in you far more than any other student that she had taught." He kneeled down before her and stared into her face. "That, Page Kimiko, is an incredible compliment. Now, I understand that perhaps you are having a bad day. Or perhaps you did not train much over the summer as you were supposed to. But I believe firmly in second chances, and I want you to try again and uphold the reputation that the Shang Falcon is spreading about you. In a month, if you do not exceed my expectations of you, I will write to the Shang Falcon and tell her that her faith you in was misplaced, and I will tell the training master that perhaps it is better that you be sent home. I saw you cheat your pushups this morning, Page Kimiko," he added, as if that was evidence enough to send her home immediately. "Do we have an understanding?"

Kimi nodded. Her tears flowed easily now, but she still picked herself up with dignity and bowed to him. She then went back up to the palace to change her hose that had ripped from her fall.

"I should have listened to my mother and father," she muttered to herself as she healed her knee that had been severely scraped against the sharp stone. _Why don't I ever learn?_ Hatsumomo had taught her that she needed to warm up and practice everyday, but she had conveniently forgotten that lesson over the summer. _You have been spoiled, and you have been lazy,_ Hatsumomo had told her. Hatsumomo was right.

Kimi planned to go down for archery, because she believed the Shang Boar did not want to see her again today. She pulled out her glaive and began some pattern dances to pass the time. _Sloppy_, she realized unhappily after a particularly easy move was not well executed. She knew that in a month, if she returned to her old ways, she could outdo all the Shang Boar's expectations, buy still she was shamed, and it cut deeper than the thought that the Shang Boar could request she get sent home.

At dinner that night she sat down next to her friends. They talked happily about what they did over the summer.

"I got to see who Patrik's and Furtan's knight masters were when I was here," Gary said. "My father wanted me to come and visit him here. He spends more and more time at the palace instead of home." His last sentence revealed an underlining tension, and the pages skirted the subject quickly.

"Who are they?" asked Kimi. She had received a letter from each of the two squires, but it had been before they made their final choices.

"Faleron of King's Reach is Patrik's, and Cleon of Kennan is Furtan's," Theo answered for Gary. The boys and Kimi shook their heads. How did Theo manage to know everything?

A new boy had joined their ranks due to Gary's sponsorship. His name was Ainsley of Torhelm and he was a very quiet boy. He trailed after the others and kept quiet, and from Kimi could tell, he had an indistinct personality. She decided to give the new boy a try anyway.

"So what did you do this summer, Ainsley?" she asked.

He looked at her, blushed, and ducked his head. He wore a smile that hinted at embarrassment and then the thin boy muttered something. Kimi stared. She glanced at Gary for translation and the older boy shrugged.

"Oh, that's good," she replied lamely.

The rest of the meal was spent discussing Jon's summer, which he spent with his family training the recruits of the Queen's Riders. It was a interesting topic because they all knew different aspects of it: Jon knew plenty because of his grandmother's and mother's involvement, Theo knew all the rumors about the Queen's Riders and their leaders, Gary knew the organization of it through his father, and Kimi knew quite a bit because she once considered joining them when she reached the age of fifteen. Ainsley sat in silence.

"He's very strange, isn't he?" Kimi asked Gary as they were walking to Jon's room to study that night.

"He is rather quiet, but I wouldn't say he's strange. He's just shy, I guess. And you of all people putting him on the spot did nothing for his nerves. Besides, he may have been shy because of Jon."

Kimi shrugged. "If you say so. I was just trying to help."

Gary smiled kindly at her. "I know. But be nice to him. His father died a few months ago, and my family's sort of adopted him. He's an only child, and I bet he's really lonely."

Kimi looked down at her dusty brown boots. "Oh, I didn't know." She felt ashamed that she had called him strange. _Today's a bad day, _she thought sadly to herself. _I get shamed twice. _

"Come on; let's go invite him to study with us." he said and walked up to Ainsley's door and knocked. "Ainsley?" he called and knocked again. The door slowly creaked open. "Do you want to study with us tonight?" The boy nodded slowly and turned to gather his books. "See?" Gary whispered to Kimi. "He'll open up in no time."

"If you say so." Kimi decided not to wait for them in case Gary was right, and that she did make him nervous. She rushed off to Jon's room and prepared for a night of studying.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thank you to all my spectacular reviewers! Yes, it certainly does pay to listen to mother. ;-) Here's another chapter, and I refuse to give anything away about Ainsley. :-) Thanks again for the reviews, and I hope you enjoy!**

Kimi worked hard the first month back to keep up. Every morning she got up and stretched and worked out, with more effort than she had ever put out for Hatsumomo or anyone else. She needed to stay to train as a knight, and she couldn't bear the thought that the Shang Boar would ask that she be sent home. The humiliation would be overwhelming, and she didn't believe she would be able to survive the shame. Worst of all, she felt she might accidentally prove to the conservatives that women should not be knights, no matter how many had gone through and passed, and that in turn would affect her Aunt Kel. She could not imagine the pain and embarrassment Kel would feel at the result of Kimi's failure, and she didn't want to. Kimi had trained for an entire year, and she was not going to be sent home now at her own lazy expense.

Kimi pushed herself to be better than the boys, and that seemed like a reasonably high goal to beat. As she was now allowed to parry against more and more of the older boys, their durable strength became more contrasting against her weak arms. She worked hard to gain muscles in her arms, and all her instructors noticed the differences in her performance from week one to week three.

One afternoon, the Shang Boar gave her a pleased smiled after a well executed hit and Kimi felt more joy at the sight of those thick lips curling up with respect than anything she could remember happening in her life.

It was a relief in her mind when after a month had passed; the Shang Boar took her off to the side and commended her improvement.

"I think you will make a very fine knight, indeed, Page Kimiko," the Shang Boar told her with a kind smile. "And I have a letter to write to your former teacher. I believe her judgment of potential has not faltered at all. Keep up the good work."

"Thank you, sir," she stuttered a little as she nearly split her lip with her smile. "Thank you so much!"

That praise left her happy and it improved her mood for days, even when Ainsley made them late for yet another meal, and when one certain page, by the name of Frantisek of Rezek, loosened the straps on her saddle when she wasn't looking, and caused her to fall off while jousting. She was furious about it, but since she had no proof, she accepted the punishment doled out to her by the training master in silence.

It was time again for Prince Jonathan's birthday banquet, and with this came the now annual excitement from the pages.

Kimi was just finishing adjusting her yellow obi on her scarlet kimono when Jon came to the door, dressed in his Tortallan-style finest. "What a great pair we make," Kimi observed and she pulled him over to the full length mirror so he could see. Full length mirrors were not common objects seen in a page's dorm, but Kimi, being the beloved and spoiled child of her parents, convinced them to give her one over the summer holiday. She loved it.

"We look like both our parents," Jon said absently and began rubbing his temples. The movement hinted at painful tenderness and it alarmed Kimi. Without asking, she reached up with turquoise fire-filled hands and touched his head. A glimpse of black flashed before her magical mind before Jonathan drew away.

"Don't do that," he ordered in a cold and commanding voice. "Do you hear me? Never do that again."

Kimi stumbled back from the force of his words. "Jonathan, what's wrong with you? You're sick!" Fear crept into her features as Jon continued to stare coldly at her.

"You had no right to look into my head! I – I could have you killed for that!"

"Jonathan, shut up," Kimi said crossly. No one would allow the boy prince to have her killed, and he was becoming hysterical. "You need to see a healer. You're not well."

"I'm fine! We have to go, anyway," he tried to advert her attention to the time, and he shuffled her to the door.

"No, Jon, not yet. Let me see," she replied gently. She drew her white hand out of his and smoothed the sleeve of his blue shirt. He hesitated, and then slowly yielded to her wishes as her hand crept up to hold his face.

Kimi conjured the fire within her slowly and probed around his head. The black spots had returned and spread out, multiplying and combining. She started to clean them away before she halted. Perhaps she should save some for a more advanced healer to examine? She wondered how she would make Jon see a healer. She knew from past experiences how stubborn he could be, but it was obviously paining him. She pulled away, leaving a few specks.

He snatched her hand and stared into her eyes. "All of it, please, Kimi?" he requested.

Something about the way he asked and the look in his eyes muffled the warning bells that were ringing in her ears. When Jon was truly concerned or upset, he used a royal order. But this calm asking from a friend released some of her worries.

"We should leave some so a healer can look at them later," she advised. His grip on her hand tightened.

"Kimi," he said in a reasonable voice, "It won't come back, I promise. I know what's causing it now. If you heal the rest of it, then I can enjoy the rest of my evening. It _is_ my birthday, you know."

"But Jon, this might be really serious –"

"I know. And the minute the pain comes back, we'll go see a healer." He forced her to look at him. "Please, not tonight of all nights."

"You promise to come tell me the moment the pain returns?" Kimi asked uncertainly. Jon did not want to see a healer, and she was almost confident that he'd lie to her to avoid them. He had always hated healers as a child, and being the only unGifted child in his family was a terrible weight to bear. He trusted Kimi alone for healings, and she had never objected to it. _Maybe I should start,_ she thought.

"Yes," he told her with sincerity in his voice. "I swear."

Kimi bit her lip until it turned red as a berry, then nodded. Jon released her hand and it fluttered uncertainly to his head like a butterfly with a broken wing. Green blue magic surged out of her hand and after a few moments the black specks were gone. Kimi only wished her worries would disappear as quickly as the black spots did.

---

"Ainsley, hurry up!" Kimi cried with an edge of impatience in her voice. In the month she had known the boy he was so slow moving it made her sick. He was often late for everything.

"Come on, Ainsley," Gary called, even more impatient than Kimi. "While the day is young, please." The two friends leaned against the stone wall of the hallway outside the young page's quarters.

"Why do we even bother?" Kimi snapped. It was the third time that week that she knew she was going to be late to dinner. Her stable duty for the year was piling up quickly, but it was nothing compared to Ainsley's lateness duty.

"He is improving," Gary replied, but he looked annoyed. He hated washing dishes more than anything and Lord HaMinch knew it too.

"That's true," Kimi allowed, but she still didn't look happy. She did not know what possessed her to take the page under her care with Gary. Sure, he was a nice enough boy, but he was too shy and blushed far too much. Kimi wasn't even sure she liked him.

"Ainsley!" We're leaving without you." Another long pause and the door finally squeaked open.

"I'm ready," he announced needlessly.

"Thank the Gods! Another minute and we would have been late for sure!" Gary ushered the other two pages down the Corridors to the Mess Hall.

The second the door groaned open Kimi and Gary sighed with great relief. Lord HaMinch had not entered yet and begun the prayers. The three quickly filled their trays with a sort of green bean casserole and pork meat and headed back to their table.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hello my wonderful reviewers! Ah, yes, patience is a virtue, or so I'm told. Since that's the case, procrastination should also be a virtue... Anyway, thank you for all your reviews, and be satisfied that all your questions will be answered in due time. I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

"Green beans again?" whined Gary slightly. It was his least favorite vegetable and they were soggy; Kimi was echoing his sentiments about the day old vegetable and nodded.

The cook glared at the two pages and waved her spatula at them. "Ye'd best be thankful ye get this meal," she chastised. "Things are not goin' well this year. There is a drought, and ye'd best be thankful for getting food at all when there are people out there starvin' t' death." Gary and Kimi ducked their heads in embarrassment and turned away from the cook with a small "sorry" on their lips.

"Nice going, Gary," Kimi said dryly.

"It wasn't my fault she overheard me! And don't deny it; you were thinking the same thing too."

Kimi rolled her eyes and glanced around for Jon. Instead she saw Ainsley sitting by himself at the usual table. Inwardly she winced, and then shook her head at her lack of sympathy for the boy. _I should at least be happy he's on time for once,_ she told herself, determined to remain positive.

Distracted by her thoughts, she didn't notice the foot that slid out before her legs caught on it. Green beans and whatever else was on her plate flew in several directions, splattering the pages at the nearby table and dotting her hose and tunic with soggy green beans. Kimi slid in the mess then quickly jumped up to face her tripper. The sight of Frantisek calmly brushing off crumbs from his tunic forced a scream up her throat, but her Yamani side stepped in and forced the sour tasting yell down painfully.

Her face turned an unattractive red color as she surveyed the damage of the area. She didn't feel comfortable going up to the cook and asking for seconds after the lecture she gave for complaining about day old food.

There was nothing else she could do except get down on her hands and knees in front of her enemy and clean the floor like a servant. Her pride stung as she kneeled onto the floor and gathered up the big items that did not require a mop. Movement on her left startled a glance from her and she saw Gary yank Frantisek up by the front of his tunic.

"Help her clean it up, you weasel," Gary growled at the boy. Gary was easily bigger than Frantisek, for though he had impressive muscles for a boy of fourteen, he was rather short.

"Gary, stop, the training master will be here any minute," Kimi ordered while glancing nervously around for Lord HaMinch.

"I saw what he did, Kimi, and he should pay for his actions," Gary replied as he twisted the front of the gray tunic so that it was strangling Frantisek.

Dipak of Weirya stood and enclosed his hand on Gary's arm. He was a friend of Frantisek, and though he did not participate in Frantisek's tormenting of the female page, his loyalty resided with his friend. "Let him go, Gary," Dipak demanded.

"I will not help some slut pick up her own mess." Frantisek choked out. Ainsley had slunk up silently behind the group during this time, and he began to giggle at what Frantisek said. Kimi snapped her head around and stared at him.

"Whose side are you on, anyway?" she demanded. She glanced around the room and saw that the other pages were feeling the tension radiated from the group and she made an executive decision. She was going to leave. She got to her feet and her hand became its own identity and no longer did what she told it to. At that moment, the hand decided to slap Frantisek soundly across his face, while her mind reacted with shock at the sight of the red swelling on his face. She turned around and left the Mess Hall as Lord HaMinch was entering it. _Perhaps Frantisek will get blamed for the mess, _she thought hopefully, but she knew that wasn't going to happen.

She returned to her room with a hollow stomach and sat against the door. She had thought that Frantisek would leave her alone; she thought that they had settled everything when Kimi found out about his niece's true father. She had thought wrong, apparently. The baby was born and everyone knew what the child looked like – a half Yamani child – and she could no longer hold it over him anymore.

_And what was with Ainsley?_ She thought angrily. She did not understand that boy at all. It was starting to make her crazy or ready to burst into tears. She had tried to be a friend to him, and all for not. _I wonder if he's related to Frantisek,_ she thought fleetingly, trying to come up with an explanation for his behavior. _Or maybe he's just one sick little boy. _

The incident at the Mess Hall that night had few repercussions. Kimi had to mop the entire Mess Hall for not cleaning up her tray; no matter how many times Gary tried to persuade the Lord HaMinch that it was not her fault. Kimi avoided Ainsley, and even Gary found ways not be as nice to the boy as he was before. It broke Kimi's heart to see him sitting alone at meal times and during the breaks as she knew it broke Gary's heart, but they had tried their best.

"Why don't we pass him off to someone else?" Kimi asked desperately a week later during dinner time. Ainsley sat by himself on the edge of the table looking forlorn, and all the pages were trying to pretend they couldn't see him. "Like Frantisek. He obviously thinks Frantisek is really funny, so why can't we suggest that Frantisek adopt him?"

"He's not a puppy, Kimi," Jon told her sternly, but his face softened when he glanced at the lonely boy playing with his food. "Actually, maybe that's not a bad idea…"

"We can't pass him off. He may not want to be passed off. If he wanted friends, he'd actually make an effort," said Gary sadly. "He could have sat with us anyway, but apparently after all this time he feels like he needs an invitation." He sighed deeply and his head sunk slowly. "I don't know what's wrong with him. It's more serious than I thought."


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Hello my wonderful and patient readers! Sorry for the long delay, but now that I've gotten over this particular bout of writer's block, the chapters should come more often. Crouchingbunny: LOL! Thank the gods! Someone else shares my twisted humor. Yes, it's supposed to be funny, in a twisted way, because 'slut' is the ONLY word he knows and he's so proud of it. Frantisek really lacks the cleverness to come up with any other good insults, and so he repeats himself. Erutanie: yes, Kimi shouldn't have left the tray, and she still needs to work on becoming more responsible. It's a flaw prepared for another chapter. RunnerNDA: Lol, yes, Gary's defending of her honor does count for something: friendship. ;) And you all will be happy to know that Ainsley's 'problem' is finally revealed in this chapter. I thought about dragging it out some more, but I've decided we've waited long enough, and he really isn't that important of a character to begin with. So, enjoy this chapter and tell me what you think! **

Ainsley did not last the rest of the week before being sent home.

"I feel really bad," Gary admitted as they watched Ainsley and his manservant prepare the horses for their departure.

"Me too," Kimi agreed. "Maybe we should have done more?" The pages were on the practice fields waiting in line to joust. Jon finished his run and was circling around as Gary urged his horse into a walk to get in the starting area of the run. He shrugged, kicked his horse into a gallop and aimed for the shield. His lance glanced off of the shield and the weighted bag came around and hit him on the back.

"More focus, Naxen!" Lord HaMinch ordered. "You haven't missed an easy hit in months! Concentrate."

Gary bowed his head and returned to the line of pages, a shade redder than before. Kimi took a deep breath and rode her horse forward. She kicked Sanda into a canter and steadied her lance in the cradle before urging her horse into a gallop. She aimed and her lanced also glanced off the shield. She made a face as the bag smacked her on the back and she circled around the practice fields. Lord HaMinch shook his head at her.

"You need to keep your lance higher and to the left more. Overall, you just need to practice more."

Kimi bowed in her saddle with a "yes, sir," and got back in line behind Gary.

"I think it's defective today," Kimi nodded to the practice jousting target.

"I think it is Lord HaMinch." Gary joked. "He has a power that he's been hiding from everyone that he only likes to use to amuse himself. See? He twiddles his fingers a bit and the target moves a little to the left so we miss every time and he can yell at –"

"Master Gareth?" a voice interrupted him.

"Yes," Gary looked down to see the servant of Ainsley standing before him.

The servant nervously scratched his scalp. "Can I speak with you, sir? It's important, regarding Master Ainsley."

"Um, yes, hold on. I have to ask my Lord HaMinch first," Gary said and dismounted. He walked stiffly over to the training master. Kimi couldn't hear the conversation, but there was a lot of gesturing on Gary's part and a lot of frowning on Lord HaMinch's.

"What do you need to talk to Gary about?" Kimi asked the servant curiously. The servant said nothing, but pulled off his floppy hat and twisted it nervously in his hands.

Gary came back at last. "He says we can if it's quick. What is it?"

"Please, Master Gareth, come over here. I want this for your ears only."

Theo, who was placed in front of Jon, twisted his head around as far as it would go when he heard that. Gary frowned at Theo and led the servant to a corner of the practice field where no one would overhear.

Theo sighed unhappily. "Gary gets to hear all the good gossip," he complained as he set himself up to joust.

Jon rolled his eyes at Kimi. As Theo galloped away, Jon said, "I swear that boy knows every piece of court rumor. I'm going to have to enlist him as my spy master when I'm king."

"Don't tell him that," Kimi advised. "That'll only give him an excuse to be a more consistent eavesdropper." Kimi glanced over to Gary and Ainsley's servant. The servant looked regretful and worried while Gary just looked horrified. Kimi felt as impatient as Theo to hear what the servant was telling her friend.

Gary returned right before it was her turn to joust. "What happened?" Kimi demanded. Her foreign eyes glinted with curiosity.

Gary shook his head so roughly his curls bounced against and cheek. He pulled himself back into the saddle and rode in front of Kimi to get into the ready. His horse must have felt his mood and the mare danced nervously under this violent and angry Gary.

The horse bucked slightly when Gary spurred it forward, but soon Gary and the horse were racing toward the target. The lance hit the shield directly and the training master praised him for his improvement.

Kimi glanced back at Theo and Jon but they both shrugged with confusion.

"That's enough for today," the training master announced, and he ordered the pages to put away their horses and get ready for dinner. Kimi dismounted from Sanda and led her mare towards the stable while telling her mare how well she did. She looked around for Gary but spotted him almost halfway to the stables and not stopping for anyone.

Kimi cornered Gary after he washed up with the other boys and came back to the palace to change for dinner. "What happened?" she asked as she followed him to his room. Gary shook his head again and moved faster through the stone corridors. "Come on, please tell me! Whatever he said must have really upset you. It'll make you feel better if you tell someone. Come on, Gary!"

Gary whipped around and stared down at the female page. "You really want to know?" Gary finally demanded savagely. "Fine then, I'll tell you the mystery of our friend Ainsley." He took a deep breath and leaned against the wall.

"He was abused by his father. His father was so horrible to him, that on his death bed a few months ago, with both his son and his wife in the room, he turned to Ainsley's mother and said something like, 'You disappointed me with having this as our son. The only thing I'm glad about now is that I'll be dead before Ainsley goes off to become a knight and shames the family's name.' Mithros, Kimi, that's why he acted the way he did. He didn't even want to be here because his father had said he was a disgrace his whole life. He only lasted this long because we tried to help him. And you know what, Kimi? If Ainsley's father was still alive I'd kill him. He's ruined that boy for life." Gary put his face in his hands and sighed deeply.

Tentatively, Kimi placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. She could not think of anything to say. Finally, she promised, "I won't tell anyone, even Jon, and especially Theo. No one will know of this. I'm sorry I pressed you so." Regret spilled from her features and her shoulders sagged with shame. "Don't blame yourself," she ordered quietly. "There was no way you could have known and no way you could have help. Just let it rest now."

Gary shook his head tiredly. "I don't know if I can." He rubbed his eyes with the back of his hands then straightened out. "I do feel better now, though," he told her with a weary smile. "Thank you, Kimi." Kimi let him walk away to his room alone, then slowly returned to her own. She thought over what Gary had told her. Perhaps it made sense, but it didn't explain everything about Ainsley's character, and the more she thought about it, the more uncertain she became that the servant told Gary the entire truth.

_Maybe he did_, she thought as she changed shirts. _How would I know how an abused boy is supposed to act? I'll probably never know the full truth about Ainsley. _The more she thought about it, the more she understood that maybe that was perfectly all right. She didn't need to know the full truth about Ainsley. That was information strictly for Ainsley, and she hoped he would figure it out, someday.


End file.
